Method of making molded-counter turn-shoes



F. E. TOOTHAKER. METHOD OF MAKING MOLDED COUNTER TURN SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 28, I920.

1,368,373. Patented Feb. 15, 1921.

UNITED STATES rarest oFFicE.

FRED E. TOOTHAKER, OF SWAMPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, NEW JERSEY.

OF PATTERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF METHOD OF MAKING MOLDED COUNTER TURN-SHOES.

Specification of Letters Patent. i ytgnted F b 15 1921 Application filed February 28, 1920. Serial No. 362,015.

1 o all whom it may concern lie it known that I, Finn) E. 'loorrmnnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Swampscott, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Methods of'llfaking liiolded-Counter Turn-Shoes, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to the manufacture of shoes and is herein illustrated in connection with a turned shoe having a molded counter.

In the manufacture of a turned shoe having a molded counter it is customary with some manufacturers to use a so-called tuclz which is a thin, substantially flat member extending across the counter, resting upon the inturned flange. thereof andnailed or otherwise fastened to the flange. Whenthe manufacture of the shoe has reached that stage in which the heel is to be attached, the lower inturned margin of the upper lies below the flange of the counter, the margin of the upper face of the heel portion of the sole contacting with the under side of the margin of the upper. Between the upper face of the heel portion of the sole and the lower face of tie tuck there is thus a space which is partially inclosed by the edge of the inturned margin of the upper and that of the flange, the height of thisspace being substantially equal to the combined thicknesses of the upper and flange. This space'renders the heel-seat less firm than it should be and is undesirable for this and other reasons which will presently appear.

According to one feature of the invention. the marginof the upper side of the heel portion of the sole (thefiesh side as distinguished from the grain side) is thinned to permit the middle of the heel portion to extend up into the space. As illustrated, the margin is beveled sufficiently to permit the middle of the heel portion of the sole to extend up into contact with the ,tuck and thereby substantially fill the space and provide a firm heel seat for the heel. attaching operation. Another advantage may also result from this construction when a wood heel 1S to be attached to the shoe. Before such a heel can be attached the grain or tread face of the heel portion of the sole must be cut so as to fit the cavity in the top of the heel. It is desirable that as little stock as possible should be removed from the sole in this heelseat fitting operation and that the operation should consist merely of beveling the margin of the heel portion of the tread face of the sole. It frequently happens, however, particularly when a thick sole is encountered, that the heel seat fitting operator is obliged not only to bevel the margin but to remove considerable stock from the middle portion. IVith the present construction the necessity for such removal is largely eliminated by reason of the fact that the heel portion of the sole is higher than it otherwise would be since the shape of its upper face permits it to extendup into the space which has been referred to above.

In the manufacture of shoes which have wood heels, a certain amount of the heel portion of the sole is cut away, as has been explained above, to provide a convex seat to fit the cavity formed in the top of the wood heel. In molded counter turn shoes, certain difficulties have arisen in connection with this fitting operation. In the case of a sewed seat shoe, it frequently happens that more or less stitches are cut thereby weak ening the heel seat. In the case of a nailed seat shoe, the nails frequentlyinterfere with the proper cutting'down of the heel portion of the sole. Moreover, a considerable amount of leather must frequentlybe cut off from the extreme heel end of the sole.

According to another feature of the invention the sole is cut out shorter than has been customary, the sole being of normal length in the. shank and forepart but shortened in the heel'portion, conveniently about one size; and preferably the heel margin is beveled on the tread face. With this construction, the work of the heel-seatfitter is simplified, and a considerable saving in stock results. In order to facilitate the heel -seat fitting operation still further, as

Well as to facilitate the production of a satisfactorily lasted heel-seat, the heel end of the shoe is left open and the upper permanently tacked or nailed to the sole while it is wrong side out upon the first last,'the

fastening taking place adjacent to the heel breast line slightly to the rear of the ends of the sewed seam so to leave the heel end of the sole free. The molded counter is then attached, also by fa'stenings which are located near the heel breast line, after which the shoe is turned, a shank piece placed in the shoe and the second last inserted. The free heel end of the sole is thenraised and the heel end of the shoe lasted over upon the "counter. Theheel end of the sole is then laid down and cut so as to fit. it for a wood heel and the heel, attached. With this procedure the appearance of the finished shoe is improved, and the liability,

which formerly existed, of nails being encountered during the heel-seat fitting operation is obviated.

The particular procedure illustrated in the accompanying drawings involves a turned shoe of that type in which a molded counter is attached :right side up to the shoe while the shoe iswrong side out upon the first last; but it'should be understood that the invention-in its broader aspects is not limited to the particular procedure and sh e'which I have illustrated.

Figure'l is a perspective of a turn shoe' Fig. 3 is a perspective of the shoe afteritq has been'turned right side out, the second last inserted and the heel end lasted, the

heel end of the sole being shown bent upwardly although it wouldinot' naturally as sumeor remain in this position;

*Fig. 4 is aperspective of the slice after i the heel-seat fitting operation has been completed; I

Fig. 5 is a cross-section through the heel end of the completed shoe; j Flg. 6 1s a 'treadeface plan showing in I full lines the initial shape of the heel end of thesole and in dotted lines the outline of the rear end of the last and the marking and cuts which are subsequently. to be made produce a proper seat for a.

in order to wood heel, and 1 7 is a similar plan showing in full lines the final condition of the heel end of the sole after the heel-seat fittingoperation, and, in dotted lines, theoutline of the rear end of the lastand the initial condition of the sole. a.

gether with a sole 11, are placed wrong side out upon the first last 13, the rear portion of the lining being slit and turned down, and the shoe pulled over and lasted as usual except that two permanent tacks 15 are driven through the upper and sole adjacent to the heel breast line and clenched on the under side (the tread face) of the sole. The tacks are preferably located about onequarter of an inch to the rear of the localities in which the seam will begin andend. The shoe is now sewed around the forepart and shank by stitches 17, the temporary lasting tacks removed and the seam trimmed. At this stage the shoe isin the condition shown in Fig. 1, the heel end of the shoebeing open-up to the locality of the tacks 15. A molded counter member. herein shown as a counter and tuck 16, 18, which have previously been fastened together by nailsor staples, is now placed in position and nailed to the shoe by nails 19 (fourbeing illustrated) whichare located in the vicinity of thetacks 15 so as to leave the heel end of the sole free, the shoe at this stage being in the condition shown in Fig. 2.

The shoe is now removed from the first last and turned right side out, the lining being drawn over the inside of the counter and its lower margin. turned inwardly over the inturned flange of the counter. The usual shank piece 21 and sock-lining 22 may now be placed in the shoe, and the second last 23 inserted. The heel end of the sole is held up out of the way as shown inFig. 3 and the open heel end of the upper lasted over the counterand fastened by tacks, the shoe at this stage being in the. condition shown in that figure. The heel end of the sole is laid down and may be fastened by a tack 25 if desired. The heel end o f th'e sole is then shaped to fit a wood heel, asshown in Fig. l, after which the heel is attached by nails 2?, and a sock lining 22 laid on the bottom of the inside of the shoe, a cross-section showing the relation of the various parts being illustrated in Fig. 5.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 6 and 7, with occasional references to the other figures, there is shown respectively the heel portion of the tread face of a sole before and after the sole is fitted for the wood heel, the outline ofthe' heel end of the last in both figures being indicated by dotted lines. The sole is shorter than a regulation sole,rthe forepart and shank being normal, the shortening having taken place in the heel portion. Convenientlythesole is about one'size short. The heel end of the sole is beveled, conveniently in the same manner, on both sides, the bevel on the tread or lower side being indicated at 31 and that on the v upper or flesh side at 83. By using a short An assembled upper 7 and lining 9,. to I sole it is, of course, possible to effect a considerable saving in sole leather. lt'is also iso possible with the present sole to effect in addition a simplification of the heel-seat fitting operation.

The usual procedure in fitting a wood heel to a slice is to place the heel on the sole and cut or scratch a mark across the sole, such mark being indicated at 35. Nith this mark as a guide, the operator cuts into the sole at both sides along the mark, as indicated at 3 7 and 39; and then, when the sole is of the usual length, removes, usually by several cuts, what, if entire, would amount to a horseshoeshaped rand to produce the seat indicated in Figs. 4 and 7. With the present sole, however, the extreme heel end is already located at a distance from the heel end of the last and beveled on the proper curve. All that is required of the operator, therefore, after having made the mark 35 and the short cross-cuts 37, 89, isto make two substantially straight cuts on a bevel as indicated at all in Fig. 7, such cuts beginning toward the heel endof the sole and ending at the cross-cuts 37, 39. All this will be clear from an inspection of Figs. 6 and '7. In Fig. 6, the original condition ofthe sole is shown in full lines and the proposed marks and cutsin dotted lines. In Fig. 7 the fitted sole is shown in full lines, and its condition before being fitted is indicated by dotted lines. It will benoted that the rear portion of the original bevel 31 forms part of the bevel of the finished seat, and that the nails and tacks are all located inside the boundary 'of the finished seat and are quite out of the way of the cuts made by the heel-seat'fitting operator.

It has been stated above that the two outs 4L1 finish the heel-seat. In some cases this may be true; but, inasmuch as the heel-seat fitting is a hand operation in which a particular heel is fitted to a particular shoe, there will usually be, with the present "sole as with soles hitherto used, a certain amount of minor trimming and paring to be done before the heel will fit accurately.

Referring now to the bevel 33 on the flesh side of the sole and more particularly to Fig. 5, it will be seen that the middle portion of the heel end of the sole extends up into contact with the tuck and thereby substantially fills the space caused by the lapping of the lower margins of the counter and upper over the under face of the tuck. The results obtained are first a firm heel seat and'second, in the case of thick soles, a saving of the leather of the heel end of the sole. lVith thick soles it has sometimes been necessary to cut away more or less of the middle of the heel portion of the sole on' the tread face because the cavity in the top of the heel was not deep enough to receive it all. The present construction, by permitting the heel portion of the sole to extend up into the. spacereferred to above, obviates.

the necessity for removing material from the middle portion of the tread side, or at least permits the removal of less stock from that portion than formerly.

In general then, the method of using a in considerably expediting the manufacture of the shoe. With reference to the. saving of time, it may be stated that'in practising the method commercially, beside the pulling-over, sewing, inseam trimming, counter nailing, heel attaching and other machines now commonly used in the manufacture of molded counter turn shoes, at heel-seat last ing machine may be used, such machine being adapted to hold up the heel end of the sole and to last theheel-seat as shown in Fig. 3, thereby cutting down the time formerly expended in lasting the heel-seat by hand.

As hasv been indicated, although a certain specific procedure has been described, it should be understood that this procedure may be varied in many particulars without departing from the broader aspects of'the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. The method of making aturned shoe which comprises thinning the margin of the heel portion of a sole so as to permitits middlepor'tionto extend up into the space partly bounded by the inturned flange of the counter which is subsequently to be attached, placing wrong side out upon a last the sole and an assembled upper and liningand thereafter attaching a molded counter and completing the manufacture of the shoe.

2. The method of makinga turned shoe which comprisesthinning the margin of the heel portion of a sole on its lower face to facilitate thesubsequent heel-seat fitting op-- eration, placing wron side out upon a last the sole and an assembled upper and lining, and thereafter attaching a molded'counter and completing the manufacture of the shoe.

3. The method of making a turned shoe which comprises thinning themargi'n of the heel portion of a sole on both its upper and lower faces, placing wrong side outupon a last the sole and an assembled upper and lining, and thereafter attaching a molded counter and completingthe manufacture of the shoe.

4. The method of making a'turned shoe which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and. a sole having a shortened heel portion in such manner that the heel end of the Sole is spaced from the heel end of the last, and thereafter attaching a molded counter n such manner that its heel end extends be: yond the heel end of the sole and completing the manufacture of the shoe.

5. The method of making a turned shoe which comprises providing a sole having a shortenedheel portion, thinning the margin of the heel portion on its upper face so asto permit the middle portion to extend up into the space partly bounded by the inturned flange of the molded counter which is subsequently to be attached, placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and the sole in such manner that the heelend of the sole is spaced from the heel end of the last, and thereafter attaching a molded counter in such manner that its heel .end extends'beyond the heel end of the sole,"and .completingthe manufacture of the shoe- 6. The method of making a turned shoe which comprises providing a sole havlnga shortened heel portion, thinning the margin of the heel portion on its lower face to facilitate the subsequent heel-seat fitting operation, placing wrong side out upona last manner that the edge of the heel end of the sole is spaced from the heel end of the last,

and thereafter attaching a molded counter in such manner that its heel endextends beyond the heel end of the sole and completing the manufacture of the shoe.

8. Themethod: of making a turned shoe,

which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an upper and llnlngand asole the heel end of which is. spaced from the heel end of the last,.attaching a molded counter right side up to the shoe while the shoe is wrong side out, and subsequently turning the shoe right side out, fitting the heel-seat and attaching the heel.

9. The method of making a'turned shoe having a Wood heel, which comprises 'plac-' ing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole having a shortened heel portion the margin of which is beveled on both sides, sewing the shoe around the forepart and shanlg'fastening a'portion of the heel end ofthe upper to the sole by fasteners driven through the upper and sole inside that part of the heel portion which will later be trimmedoff to provide a seat for the wood heel, attaching a molded counter right side up by fasteners also located inside the portion to be trimmed off, and thereafter turning the shoe right side out, fitting'the heel seat and attaching shank, fastening a molded counter to the sole by nails which are also located in the vicinity of the heel breast line, turning the shoe right side out, inserting a second last, lasting the open end of the shoe, fitting the heel seat and attaching a heel.

11. The method of makinga shoe, which 1 comprises placing upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole having the margin of'fits heel portion beveled on one face to permit the middle of theheel portion to extend up into the-space partly boundedby the edge ofjthe-inturned flange of the counter, and thereafter attaching the upper to the sole and completing the manufacture of the shoe. V f

12. A step-product in the manufacture of a'turned shoe comprising an assembled upper and lining and a sole wrong side outupon a last,-the upper and lining being attached to the sole around the forepart and shank, the upper being additionally attached to'the sole bypermanent fasteners driven through the upper into the sole in the vicinity of the heel breastlinaa molded counter being attached right sideiup to the sole by fasteners also located in the vicinity of the heel breast line, the lining being slit at two pointson opposite sides of the shoe just forward of the first-named fasteners and turned back around the heel portion of the shoe, the heel end of the shoe being open and the heel end of the sole free. 1

18. A step-product in the manufacture of :1 turned shoe, comprising an assembled upper and lining and a sole wrong side out upon a last, the upper and lining being sewed to the sole around the forepart and shank, the upper being additionally. attached to the sole by permanent fasteners driven through the upper and clenched on the lower face of the sole at points just to. the rear ends of the seam, and the lining being slit at opposite sides of the shoe and. the margin of its heel portion turned back.

14. Ihemethod of making aturned shoe which comprises placing. wrong side out upon alast an assembled' upper and lining and a sole, sewing the shoe around the forepart and shank, fastening the upper permanently to the sole fasteners located in the vicinity of, but spaced from, the ends of the seam so as to leave the heel end of the shoe open and the heel end of the sole free, attaching to the shoe while in this condition a molded counter right side up by fasteners located in the vicinity of the firstnamed fasteners and subsequently completing the manufacture of the shoe.

15. The method of making a turned shoe, which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole, sewing the shoe around the forepart and shank, attaching a molded counter right side up to the shoe while the shoe is wrong side out and its heel end open, and subsequently turning the shoe right side out, lasting the open heel end of the upper, and completing the manufacture of the shoe.

16. The method of making a turned shoe, which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole, permanentlv fastening the upper to the sole in the vicinity of the heel breast line, attaching a molded counter by fasteners also located in thevicinity of the heel breast line, the heel end of the shoe being left open and the heel end of the sole free,

and thereafter turning the shoe,inserting a second last, closing the heel end of the shoe, and attaching a heel.

17. The method of making a turned shoe, which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole, sewing the shoe around the forepart and shank, permanently lasting the upper to the sole in the rear of the ends of the stitch line in such manner as to leave the heel end of the sole free and the heel end of the shoe open, and subsequently incorporating in the shoe a molded counter, fitting the heel seat and attaching the heel.

18. The method of making a turned shoe, which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole, pulling-over and lasting the shoe,

drawing the upper over the sole at two points located in proximity to the heel breast line and permanently fastening the upper to the sole at these points but leaving the heel end of the shoe open, sewing the shoe, fastening a molded counter to the sole by fasteners also located in the vicinity of the heel breast line so as'to leave the heel end of the sole free, turning the shoe,-inserting a second last, lasting the open heel end of the upper and attaching a heel.

19. The method of making a turned shoe, which comprises placing wrong side out upon a last an assembled upper and lining and a sole, lasting the shank and forepart and inserting the usual lasting tacks, drawing the upper over the heel portion of the sole at two substantially opposite points spaced a little to the rear of the'locality at which the stitches will end, fastening these two points permanentlyby fasteners driven through the upper and clenched on the grain side of the sole, the heel end of the shoe being left open, sewing the shoe around the shank and forepart, pulling the lasting tacks, attaching a molded counter by fasteners which are located in the vicinity of the two before-mentioned permanent fasteners so that the heel end of the shoe is left open and the heel end of the sole is left free, pulling the last, turning the shoe, laying the lining, inserting a shank, inserting a second last, lifting up the free heel end of the sole, drawing the open heel portion of the upper over the counter and fastening it in place, laying down the heel end of the sole, fitting the heel seat, and attaching a heel.

20. A shoe comprising a counter having an inturned flange, a member extending across the shoe inside the counter and located above the inturned flange, a sole the margin of the heel portion of which is located below the flange and a heel located below said heel portion, the margin of the heel portion of the sole on its upper side being cut away to permit the middle portion a to extend into contact with said member in the area partially inclosed by the edge of the inturned flange of the counter.

21. A shoe comprising a counter having an inturned flange, a member extending across the shoe inside the counter and located above the inturned flange, a sole the margin of the heel portion of which is located below the flange and a heel located below the heel portion of the sole and having a cavity in its upper face, the margin of the heel portion of the sole being beveled on its lower side to provide for said cavity and on its upper side to permit the middle portion thereof to extend up into the space which is partially inclosed by the edge of the inturned flange of the counter.

22. A turned shoe comprising a counter having an inturned flange, an upper the lower margin of the heel portion of which is also inturned and is located below the inturned flange of the counter, a sole the margin of the heel portionrof which is located below the flange, and a heel located below the heel portion of the sole and having a cavity in its upper face, the margin of the heel portion of the sole being thinned on its lower side to provide for the cavity in the heel and on its upper side to permit its middle portion to extend into the space which is partially inclosed by the edges of p the heel end of which the counter is at- I seat of the heel and on its upper side to permit its middle portion to extend into the space which is partially inclosed hy the v edges of the inturned merginsof the counter end upper.

v. 10 In testimony WhereOfI have signed my name to this specification.

FRED), TOOTHAKER. 

